USAID ASSIST Project Research and Evaluation Report FY16

The ASSIST R&E agenda falls under three main categories to address two questions and one broad theme: How can ASSIST improve the way that improvement activities are implemented in the settings in which it works? What is the capacity that countries have to continue to improve health care independent of ASSIST? The major theme is improving the rigor of program evaluation and research conducted in the field of health care improvement. In fiscal year (FY) 2016, the R&E unit supported 39 studies in 15 countries, including Burundi, Cote d'Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ecuador, Honduras, India, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mali, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, and Ukraine. The team also supported four multi-country studies, including experiences from the Partnerships in Community Child Protection in Africa, a multi-country study in Latin America and the Caribbean evaluating a web-based improvement collaborative to prevent neonatal infections in hospitals, supporting community providers through a community health system approach in Ethiopia and Tanzania, and a survey of how medical schools in Africa incorporate improvement methods in their curricula. The R&E unit provided technical assistance to Botswana, Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, and Lesotho on validation of their improvement indicators. Data collection from control groups was planned or conducted in Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda. The unit is working to disseminate knowledge generated by these studies through web-published reports, peer-reviewed journal articles, and presentations at relevant international meetings to encourage wider adoption of improvements methods. The ASSIST R&E agenda includes several key activities, including the validation of 25% of improvement indicators, collecting data from control groups for 10% of indicators, evaluating the design of improvement activities for lower- and middle-income countries, evaluating methods and approaches for effective design and implementation of scale-up, and conducting economic analysis of improvement activities. These activities aim to advance learning in improvement science, improve the rigor of program evaluation and research, and promote the sustainability and institutionalization of quality improvement beyond the period of external technical assistance. The R&E unit has made significant progress in FY16, including finalizing several key studies, launching new studies, and providing technical assistance to several countries. The unit has also supported the development of several reports, articles, and presentations that highlight the findings and lessons learned from these studies. These efforts aim to promote the adoption of improvements methods and contribute to the improvement of health care systems in low- and middle-income countries. The ASSIST R&E agenda is focused on several key areas, including the validation of improvement indicators, the evaluation of the design of improvement activities, and the evaluation of methods and approaches for effective design and implementation of scale-up. These activities aim to improve the rigor of program evaluation and research, promote the sustainability and institutionalization of quality improvement, and advance learning in improvement science. The R&E unit has also supported several multi-country studies, including a study on the experiences from the Partnerships in Community Child Protection in Africa, a study on a web-based improvement collaborative to prevent neonatal infections in hospitals, a study on supporting community providers through a community health system approach, and a study on how medical schools in Africa incorporate improvement methods in their curricula. These studies aim to promote the adoption of improvements methods and contribute to the improvement of health care systems in low- and middle-income countries. Overall, the ASSIST R&E agenda is focused on improving the rigor of program evaluation and research, promoting the sustainability and institutionalization of quality improvement, and advancing learning in improvement science. The R&E unit has made significant progress in FY16, and the unit continues to work towards its goals and objectives in FY17.